Variety is the spice of life, but the ingredient can be costly for healthcare
With today’s focus on individualized, patient-centric medicine, some degree of care variation is desirable. But non–value-added variability can result in unnecessary costs for patients and payers. Reevaluating how diagnostic guidelines are developed and used can lower costs while helping providers to improve outcomes. In 1785, William Cowpers penned “The Task,”...
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If healthcare is an orchestra, then providers play ‘first fiddle’
Health systems can trim costs by millions of dollars a year — and improve patient outcomes — by reducing care variations. It starts with the diagnostic process, which makes provider engagement an essential component. So how can hospital administrators get that all-important provider buy-in? Through effective communications. These seven...
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Integrating care during a global pandemic
Along with upending our daily routines, the pandemic has forced healthcare leaders to rethink the processes involved in the delivery of care. With COVID-19 case and mortality rates continuing to surge, better integration across the continuum of care and in all care settings is becoming increasingly important. Too often...
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Labacoeconomics™: Applying the concept of pharmacoeconomics to the clinical laboratory
For decades, stakeholders throughout the healthcare industry have used the discipline of pharmacoeconomics to measure and compare the costs and consequences of pharmaceutical products. By applying a similar concept called labacoeconomicsTM to their clinical laboratory’s services, hospitals and health systems can significantly improve their financial performance while providing a...
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Patient Consumer Engagement
Research shows that highly activated patients have lower rates of hospitalization and emergency department visits. So how can hospitals and health systems increase patient engagement and improve the patient-provide experience? This often-overlooked resource can play a central role. Globally, healthcare is in transition. Multiple factors are contributing to this transition,...
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